


Build Me Up

by Bloomful



Category: Pocket Monsters: Sword & Shield | Pokemon Sword & Shield Versions
Genre: Angst and Fluff and Smut, Developing Relationship, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Gay, Hop isn't straight, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Just trust the process, M/M, Reunited and It Feels So Good, Rose is bad man, Texting, basically everyone - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-31
Updated: 2021-02-22
Packaged: 2021-02-25 14:29:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,115
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22497628
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bloomful/pseuds/Bloomful
Summary: After losing his title, Leon felt his life begin to crumble. His past best friend enters his life again and helps Leon rebuild his life once again. The love between them takes them far.
Relationships: Dande | Leon/Kibana | Raihan
Comments: 2
Kudos: 46





	1. Ⅰ: Rose's Reign Wilts

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this last year around the same time however, I corrected many mistakes! I originally wrote my story while I had Covid-19 and I overlooked a few mistakes while experiencing a fever induced delirium. More chapters are coming, enjoy!

The silence in Wyndon Stadium was in great contrast to its volume level from merely a few hours ago. It was the battle between Champion Leon and the finalist of the Gym Challenge. The crowd was ruthless with the volume, it could rival Pier’s concerts. 

It was the battle of the decade. No one has made it to Leon, and now a challenger has arrived. The battles lasted for an hour and the outcome was unbelievable. The undefeated champion was, in fact, defeatable, and he was defeated by a silent child.

The atmosphere of the stadium was now lugubrious. The lights were shut off and only the light from the night sky seeped its way through the glass roof. The sight of the empty chairs and field only reminded Leon of his loss today.

Leon sat in the terminal that connected the battlefield and the locker room. He sat in the fetal position and quietly sobbed to himself. If it was the only place where he wouldn’t be seen. 

Being champion meant everything. No- it was everything to him. His teenage years, his personality, his very being, everything belonged to being a champion. He had lost a huge part of what made him him. To lose it all in a single battle shook him to his very core. 

Leon’s emotions were everywhere and untamable. The entire ordeal with Rose summoning Eternatus, getting injured by Eternatus, and then the loss of his title took a toll on him. And with his championship, went his income, his popularity, his winning streak, his importance in life. He was nothing now.

Leon’s thoughts crowded his mind and made him sob louder. It hurts, it hurts so much.

He thought about how he spent the majority of his life as champion. Since the age of ten, he had been on display for the public, he’s been on display for Rose…

Leon choked on his sob and clenched his hair.

“AAH!” He screamed out loud. Please don’t think of that. It’s over now.

It didn’t matter how much he tried to pull the thoughts out of his mind, the years of abuse he had gone through still stuck. He cried out hysterically, not just because of the terrible memories, but because he knew the abuse had finally ended. Rose is locked behind bars. Yet, Leon still had this burden to carry.

“W-Why me!” He sobbed out. “I want my childhood back..”

Leon shook violently as the memories crashed into his consciousness. 

He was breaking down.

After all these years, he finally broke. His throat became raw from the loud sobs and his scalp sore from all the hair pulling. The taste of blood slowly crawled on his taste buds, be he didn’t care.

He felt responsible for the abuse. He hid the abuse he had gone through from everyone who loved him. It was his fault for not telling him to stop; it was his fault for not speaking to anyone, and it will continue to be his fault for not speaking up about it now.

“I hate myself so much…” He whispered before sinking to the floor. 

He laid there, crying on the cold pavement. He couldn’t bring himself to face the public anymore. He would rather stay in the stadium and rot before the public can get a glance at him.

Leon’s ears perked at the sound of footsteps coming from the direction of the locker rooms. Whoever it was, Leon didn’t care at the moment. He continued crying as if he was still alone.

The footsteps grew quicker, as if the person was in a hurry. The noise got louder and louder, and as it got louder, Leon’s heart started beating faster. He didn’t want to face the person or even know who it was.

“Leon?” The voice called out worriedly. 

The voice was deep and silky. It was a familiar voice that Leon longed for. It was Raihan.

Leon stopped sobbing and quickly sat up. He wiped his face quickly. He couldn’t let Raihan see him like this, he wasn’t comfortable around him, not like the past.

“Hi…” Leon’s response was raspy. 

He plastered one of his fake smiles, but Raihan saw through it. Raihan examined Leon’s face. His eyes were red, mascara was running, and his hair disheveled. Raihan had never seen his friend look this untidy since he became Champion. He had forgotten Leon displayed any emotion but confidence.

“Leon, what’s w-” Raihan stopped himself. He knew what was wrong, he didn’t bother to ask. 

“Let’s take a walk.” Raihan finished. He reached a hand over to Leon and the other hesitantly held onto it. Raihan helped Leon from off the ground and continued to hold his hand.

Raihan guided Leon to the battlefield. Leon felt tears prick his eyes as the memory of the time he spent here flooded his mind again.

“Rai I-”

“It’s okay, trust me.” Raihan cut off Leon. Leon looked up as Raihan and witnessed an expression he had rarely seen on his face. An expression of care. It reminded him of when they were kids.

They continued walking until they were in the middle of the field. Raihan took both of Leon’s hands in his and looked at Leon. His angelic baby blue eyes softened at Leon’s puffy golden ones. He sympathized with the champion. He knew that losing his championship would crush him, but little did he know that there were more underlying issues. 

The moonlight illuminated the pair. It was soft and intimate. Leon eased up and began to remember the times he spent with Raihan when he was young. This was his old friend, the person he always turned to. The person he eventually turned away for fame. 

Leon shook the thought away and enjoyed the peaceful silence shared between the two. Just when he was about to open his mouth to ask what’s happening, Raihan spoke.

“Leon, I am proud of you.” Raihan began to say. Leon was caught off guard. He couldn’t believe that Raihan, the Raihan, was saying this. He felt his heart skip a beat at how sincere Raihan sounded. He knew this wasn’t out of pity, he was genuine.

“For a decade, you held the title of being champion. You’ve shown the world how fiery battling could get, and you became an idol for kids across the globe.” Raihan continued. Leon’s breath became uneasy. “You are an inspiration and your influence doesn’t stop just because of a title lost. You’re still the Champion. You’re still loved by all.”

Tears were forming once again, though not due to bitterness. Leon couldn’t respond.

“I know we haven’t spoken in a while due to how busy we’ve been with life, and I know we’ve both changed. But I know deep down you’re still the kid who cried on my shoulder after you would lose a battle, or got scared while we camped at night. I know you are feeling down and I want to say that, I’m here for you, like I was back then... This is a big change, trust me, I understand that. I just wish that in your next chapter in life, you would just let me be there for you, like before.”

The memories of them together as kids, before he was Champion, filled his mind. He remembers those times being the best days of his life. No supervision, no rules, no authority, just pure love and fun with his friends. Oh, how he wanted to rewind time and fully absorb those moments. 

The tears spilled over. Leon bowed his head and began to sob, Raihan pulled him close and hugged him tightly. 

“I-I’m so s-sorry!” Leon sobbed out loudly. Raihan only responded by hugging him tighter. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.”

From the second he became champion, he had become busy. He tried his best to communicate with his friends, but it was difficult. Very soon, he stopped contact with everyone. He stopped talking to Sonia, Raihan, Piers, Hop, to everyone. He lost everyone he loved in exchange for being on top, and he hated it.

“Everyone misses you, Leon. I know I have.” Raihan softly spoke. He felt Leon shaking in his arms and felt the need to hold him forever, but he knew he had to let him go, so he did. Leon wiped his eyes and exhaled a shaky sigh.

“Thank you, for still caring about me., despite me-” Leon choked on his words as he cried again. He hasn’t cried in years. Rose groomed him to never show any emotion that could give off any negative signs. He had been groomed by that man for years, and he was glad that he was crying. He was glad that he was breaking Rose’s training. He wanted to cry until he could no more.

“Don’t mention it, Lee.” Raihan replied. The conditioned Leon was slowly breaking and the real Leon was coming back to life. Raihan missed that Leon with all his heart. He watched his friend from afar change from a shy, humble boy to an overly confident showman. His personality was erased and replaced with something superficial. He loathed what happened to his friend.

“Let’s go get you cleaned up. We can ride my Flygon back to your place to avoid paparazzi.” Raihan’s suggestion made Leon smile softly.

“Sure thing.” Leon responded. Raihan nonchalantly held out his hand and Leon gladly took it. They walked back to the locker rooms together. Ten years of separation could never break the loving bond the boys shared. They were finally reunited.


	2. Ⅱ: Reunited

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally updated after a year... sorry.
> 
> But, I have about 5 chapters planned out so far! More coming soon!
> 
> (P.S. Leon is Afro-Latino, change my mind.)

It had been a week since the battle, and a week since he had left his apartment. However, it’s not like he chose to stay at home for this long. He was instructed to, by doctors. 

The stress from Eternatus and the battle between him and the intense battle with the new champion took a toll on him. After Raihan had kindly guided Leon back home, he collapsed as soon as Raihan left. His collapse worried his Rotom phone, causing it to call for medics. Medical personnel quickly arrived at his apartment and treated him there. They were strict with him and instructed him to follow their rules; eat three meals a day, take his medication, avoid social media, and rest as much as possible for a week.

So he abided. 

He spent his sheltered days watching his favorite shows on Pokéflix or listening to music while playing with his pokémon. But whenever he did such activities, his mind couldn’t help but let his mind wander, eventually leading him to think about his encounter with Raihan…

Despite the two not being able to hang out as often as they liked to for over a decade, Raihan’s actions were very sweet and kind on the day Leon lost his title. Leon thought it was very… unbelievable. You just don’t drop something so heartfelt to someone you barely talk to, right? It confused Leon. Maybe Raihan just wanted to cheer him up? Yeah, that’s it. 

Whatever the reason, Raihan’s words stuck to his consciousness like glue.

Anyhow, Leon was relieved when a week had finally passed, he could now direct his thoughts elsewhere. He rose from his bed and glanced at his alarm clock. It was 9:32 at night.

Leon internally scolded himself for sleeping in so late. He swiped his phone from off the nightstand, hoping that his Rotom would allow him to browse the internet. Sadly. his Rotom refused to let him open any messages or apps.

“Rotom, it’s been a week, open up!” Leon whined when he tried to open Pokégram, but with no luck.

“B-But it’z been exactly zix days, twenty-three hourz and fifty-nine minutez!” Rotom buzzed.

Leon groaned loudly and fell back into his bed with a huff. He was frustrated, but he knew his Rotom was only doing what it was instructed.

“I’m z-zorry! The doctor was very z-ztrict.” Rotom pouted at Leon. Leon looked at Rotom and sighed softly. “It’s fine. Imma go take a shower, behave yourself.”

Leon rolled out of bed and headed to his bathroom to shower for the day- erm… night. He took a steamy hot shower. The searing water stung as the streams hit his skin. His skin became red, but he strangely enjoyed the painful sensation. He turned down the temperature and began washing his long, tangled hair. He massaged the shampoo into his scalp, closing his eyes as he enjoyed the sensation. 

“BZZZ!”  
Leon opened his eyes and pulled the shower curtain to the side to check if anyone was there making noise. 

There was no one.

He shrugged his shoulders and closed the curtain. He rinsed the shampoo out and drenched his hair in conditioner. He ran his fingers through his hair to detangle it, grunting each time his fingers got caught in the tangled strands.

“BZZZ BZZZ!” 

“¿Qué es eso?” Leon thought to himself. 

He peeked past the curtains and once again he saw no one. Quickly, he finished washing his hair and scrubbed himself clean before hopping out. He yanked a towel from off the counter and exited the bathroom. The buzzing noise grew louder as he began to walk towards his room. He swung open the door and gasped at his phone, which was vibrating nonstop. It was spinning sporadically in circles on the nightstand.

“Rotom, ¿qué diablos está pasando?” Leon incredulously breathed out as he picked up his phone.

“Y-You have z-zo many mezzagez…” Rotom groaned as he continued buzzing. Leon felt bad for putting Rotom through this.

“Rotom, exit the phone!” Leon freaked out. Rotom obeyed and flew out the phone. 

Leon sighed and began swiping through his phone to turn off the notifications. The pop-up notifications on his phone ranged from Rose’s awakening of Eternatus, his loss at the champion battle, and his friends checking up on him. A pang of guilt occurred in his chest when he read all the worry texts from everyone.

‘Leeeeeee, te extraño tantoooo😢’  
Hop. 

Leon smiled at the message.

‘Hey Leon, I hope you’re feeling well! Please text me back whenever you can.’  
Sonia.

‘Hey champ, everyone misses you. Text me so we can all meet up.’  
Raihan.

A plethora of more texts invaded his phone. It was too overwhelming. He muted them and only focused on a select few. He checked his email and saw one mail from Oleana, Rose’s secretary. Leon’s thumb froze and hovered over it. The subject read, It is time to come clean. How intimidating.

He mustered up the courage to finally tap it. The rest of the email read as follows:

‘It is time to come clean, Leon.

I have been blind to the abuse Rose had put you through. 

While I was cleaning out his office, I came across photos and tapes of you in appalling situations. What he did was illegal.

Now that he is behind bars, speak out about this immediately. Whenever you want to discuss this, please message me so I can set up a meeting.’

Leon froze once more. His entire body shuddered as he reread the email. No, no no no. 

Tears threatened to spill from his eyes at the thought of what he went through. He has told no one about _that_. He was furious at Rose not only because he abused him, but that he carelessly left them around for someone to find. He had hoped that with the imprisonment of Rose, the reminder of the abuse will be locked away as well.

He didn’t know how to respond to Oleana. There was no way he ready to ever speak about it to anyone. He closed out the email and texted his friends. He saw he was added to a group chat with all the gym leaders and challengers awhile back. The chat was named, “Leon’s Fanclub”. He let out a dry laugh at it. He looked at the most recent message, which was from Raihan.

Raihan: i feel like hop should become a gym leader tho

Leon laughed at the thought of his baby brother becoming a gym leader. He’d be such a cute leader.

Leon: I agree, he should replace you

Almost immediately, everyone in the chat started to type.

Raihan: damn.

Sonia: Leon!

Hop: hi lee!!!! also do you really think i should 😳😳😳

Piers: Oh, he’s back.

Marnie: Welcome back.

Nessa: Leon, I am so sorry you had to come back to this cursed chat. These little kiddos are crazy.

Raihan: Lies.

Bea: Lies.

Allister: Lies.  
Bede: Lies.

Gloria: Lies.

Hop: Lies.

Marnie: Lies.

Nessa: See what I mean?

Raihan: No.

Hop: No.

Marnie: No.

Bede: No.

Allister: No.

Gloria: No.

Bea: No.

Nessa: AND RAIHAN LEADS THEM

Raihan: No.  
Leon laughed out loud at the amount of no’s being sent in the chat. He doesn’t remember the last time he laughed this hard with friends. Well, now that he mentioned it, he never had the time to just sit down and check his messages. Now that he was no longer under the thumb of Rose, he could freely do whatever he wants. He guessed there was a bright side to this.

Sonia: Leon, how are you feeling?

Leon paused and debated between telling the truth or a lie.

Leon: I’ve been better

Nailed it.

Hop: lee come home, mama and i miss u ❤️

Raihan: lee come to hammerlocke, flygon and i miss u ❤️

Hop: dont copy me!

Raihan: I didnt :|

Sonia: Come home Lee, you can see both Hop and I :)

Raihan: yeah well, if he came to hammerlocke he could see Flygon and i :)

Sonia: Just come to Postwick, like you always do Raihan.

Leon became confused at Sonia’s message. ‘Like you always do’

Since when did Raihan visit Postwick? 

Raihan: fine, I’m coming over rn

Sonia: NOW? 

Raihan: Now.

Hop: KSDNADM YAY! LEE COME TOO, YOU CAN MEET MY GIRLFRIEND!

What the fuck? My little brother has a girlfriend? Leon was more than shocked. His baby brother was dating. Leon had never dated anyone, and he’s 21.

Leon: Wait what? When did my little Hopper start dating?

Hop: like three weeks ago

Leon: I wish I knew, I would have taken you out to celebrate.

Hop: Let’s do it when you visit!

Marnie: Smh Hop, you’re breaking the little sibling code. You have to tell your big bro everything.

Piers: Yeah.

Hop: i tried but he was busy…

Leon felt the guilt of not being there for his brother starting to grow in his chest. He admits, he never had enough time for Hop. 

Leon: Well I’m happy for you Hopper!

Hop: omg- 💝💕💘💞💖💓💗

Sonia: Leon you have to meet my girlfriend! I will bring her!

Leon: I know you and Nessa are dating, I’ve seen photos

Nessa: Hehe >:3 

Raihan: i’ll bring my boyfriend then.

Leon’s heart sank. Why did he feel this way? Why does he care so much about Raihan having a boyfriend? Maybe because Raihan hid that fact from him? Yeah, that has to be it.

Leon hesitated before responding.

Leon: The more the merrier!

Raihan: epic, i’ll go pick him up rn

Leon: Imma go get ready :)

Leon set his phone down and sighed. He was still only standing in a towel with damp hair. He dried himself off from head to toe. He threw on an oversized hoodie and jeans. Since he wasn’t champion anymore, he could wear whatever he liked, right?

He examined himself in his long mirror. His hair was a mess. To be honest, he didn’t know how to tame his hair. He brushed through it, but it only got frizzier. With a defeated sigh, he left it alone before it got worse. He slipped on his shoes along with his favorite cap and called for his Rotom phone.

“Rotom, vamos-”

A knock on the door interrupted his voice.

“Who is it?” Leon called out. He peeked through the peephole of his door and saw no one. He slowly opened the door and looked to the right and saw no one. As he whipped his head to peer to the left, a figure jumped in front of him and grabbed his arms. Leon screamed and started to fight back. A familiar laugh filled his ears, and he stopped his attack.

“¡Mierda! You’re such an asshole!” Leon half-jokingly yelled as he looked up at the perpetrator. It was Raihan.

“Aw, you’re too sweet,” Raihan responded with a grin plastered on his face. He looked Leon up and down, and up again. He placed a hand on Leon’s head and tilted his head in confusion.

“What’s up with your hair?” Raihan asked. Leon’s hands instantly flew to his head, expecting to feel his cap however, it had fallen off his head during the commotion. Leon, now embarrassed, puffed his cheeks and turned away from Raihan. Raihan laughed and spun Leon back around and saw a faint blush on his face. “What’s the issue? It was just a question.”

“I don’t know how to do my hair,” Leon admitted as he picked his cap from off the ground and placed it back on his head. “I usually had Rose’s makeup team do it.”

“You don’t know how to do your own hair? How incompetent are you?” Raihan jokes. Leon visibly flinched at Raihan’s words, which Raihan picked up. 

“I’m kidding,” Raihan added, but Leon still looked half-hurt. Raihan sighed and took the cap off of Leon’s head. 

“How about I help you then?” Raihan suggested. Leon hesitated before guiding Raihan back into his apartment. Raihan followed Leon to his bathroom and watched as Leon rummaged through his cabinet. He found a jar of something white and tossed it to Raihan.

“That’s what they usually use in my hair,” Leon said as he held a brush in his other hand. He handed it to Raihan and walked out of the bathroom. Raihan followed behind once again. They made it in the living room and walked over to the couch. Raihan sat down on the couch while Leon sat between his legs on the floor.

Raihan scooped some cream from the jar and worked it through Leon’s hair. Leon closed his eyes from the sensation. Raihan’s face warmed up at the sight.

“Pay attention, Leon, because I’m not doing this again.” Raihan spoke softly. Leon hummed in acknowledgment but still kept his eyes closed. Raihan smiled at his friend’s silliness. He brushed his hair until it was detangled. Raihan could have finished Leon’s hair right there, but he decided to braid it. 

“Finished!” Raihan exclaimed while patting Leon’s head. Leon stood up and looked in a mirror on the wall. 

“Ooooh, this is different!” Leon grinned as he played with the braid. Raihan picked up Leon’s cap and placed it back on his head. 

“Let’s head out,” Raihan commanded as he walked out of the apartment. Leon followed him out and locked his apartment door. Leon reached for Charizard’s Pokeball but stopped when Raihan held onto his hand.

“I wanna take the train,” Raihan smirked. 

“That’s cool, but I wanna take Charizard,” Leon smirked back. Raihan shrugged and walked towards the station. 

“Alright, see you later.” Raihan continued walking without turning back. He heard footsteps quickly approaching until Leon appeared beside him. Raihan bit the inside of his cheek to prevent himself from smiling at how cute his friend was.

“Anyways…” Leon trailed on. “Where is your boyfriend?” 

“I already picked him up.” Raihan deadpanned. Leon looked up at his friend to see any facial expression that could help him figure out what Raihan meant. He didn’t see his boyfriend anywhere-

Oh.

“Ew! As if!” Leon exclaimed. He stuck a finger in his mouth to emphasize his disgust. A smug smile crawled onto Raihan’s face.

“You’d make a cute boyfriend though.” Raihan said matter-of-factly. Raihan walked onto the train and Leon followed behind with a shocked expression.

Is he flirting with me? Leon thought to himself. The two sat across from each other on the train. Raihan looked at Leon and saw the gears turning in his head.

“You’re thinking too much, himbo.” Raihan said as he rolled his eyes. Leon glared at him and kicked his legs under the table. Raihan hissed and glared at Leon. Leon smirked and winked. Raihan pulled his phone and snapped a photo of himself. He flipped the camera and pointed it at Leon.

“Smile Champ!” Raihan exclaimed. Leon looked straight at the camera and stuck his middle finger up. Raihan snapped the photo and laughed out loud. Leon leaned over the table to look at the photo and chuckled. This reminded him of old times.

He was happy.

**Author's Note:**

> Follow me on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/_Bloomful_) !


End file.
